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April 9, 2015

A Day in the Life of a Human Services Case Manager

Case managers
are responsible for coordinating a number of activities and services for their
clients on a daily basis. Some days a case manager can be on the road all day
visiting clients and some days in meetings for five hours of the day. There are
other times when a crisis situation can consume two to three days of a case
manager’s week. Then there are some days that are totally consumed with
paperwork.

There is
never really a dull moment during the day of a case manager. There are always
new resources that need to be explored and new regulations that need to be
understood and implemented. Managing a typical workday can be a major challenge
with juggling paperwork, meetings and constant phone calls. Developing a daily
routine can help provide a general framework and guide for how to schedule your
day. Although the likelihood of your day going exactly as you planned it is
small, a basic guideline is helpful in maintaining a sense of organization.

Here is
my typical routine for a “normal” work day. Although I’m not sure there is such
thing as a normal day in the world of case management.

1.
Check Phone Messages/Email-I usually
check and return phone messages and emails. I tend to handle messages based on
the order of when I receive them. If there is a message that’s an emergency,
then that takes precedence.

2.
Check Calendar for Appointments-Double check
for any appointments that are scheduled for today or in the future. Of
course prepare to take care of any meetings scheduled for today.

3.
Check for any expiring Reports/Plans-Most agencies that utilize electronic records have a
notifications system that provides reminders when reports are approaching their
due dates or past due. This is a time when I check my notifications for
reports or progress notes that are due and/or incomplete.

4.
Handle Walk-ins/Unscheduled Appointments-There are some occasions when clients come to the office
unannounced without an appointment. It’s always been my policy never to turn
people away unless I absolutely have no choice. If this is the case, I make
sure there is someone else available to provide assistance.

5.
Schedule Future Appointments-A full caseload (in most situations) is around 30-35 cases.
There is usually at least one annual treatment plan due each month. It’s
recommended that annual treatment plan meetings be scheduled about a month in
advance to allow enough time for each service provider to complete their
treatment plans. You also want to plan ahead to be respectful of everyone’s
schedule and not plan at the last minute.

6.
Wrap up daily paperwork-I try to finish logging all of my notes at the end of the
day. Some agencies require a certain amount of direct service time be
documented on a daily basis. In a perfect world all progress not for the day
would be completed by the end of the day. In reality you will likely finish up
these notes the following day.

7. Plan for the next day-The final step is planning for the next day. This involves
reviewing my calendar for appointments and setting up reminders for notes and
other reports that need to be completed.